Case for clinical thermometers



May 19, 1942.

'F. s. DICKINSON QASE FOR CLINICAL Filed July 24, 1939 mvizmon Zl/FLf/Gl/ SJIcK/Msa/V B Y' I WITNESS I ,zfz w ATTORNEYS Patented May 19, 1942 f UNlTED STATES PATENT QF'FIGE 2,283,599 CASE FOR CLINICA THERMoME'rnas Fairleigh S, Dickinson, Rutherford, N. J. Application July 24, 1939, Serial No. 286,145

4 Claims. (01. 20.6-46.5)

The invention relates to a case adapted to hold one or more clinical thermometers. 'The object of the invention is to provide a thermometer case to be carried in a physician pocket and capable of manipulation to present a thermometer for the physician's use without the necessity of removing the case from his pocket While automatically locking the case against unintentional opening, while the thermometer is within the case, the locking action resulting from the coopl eration between the cap and the casing, and the thermometer contained therein.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which Fig. l is a central longitudinal section of a case adapted to hold two clinical thermometers; I

Fig. 2 is a. front view of the case of 1 with the cap turned to 90, exposing the top end of the thermometer;

Fig. 3 is a side view of the case of Fig. l;

Fig. 4 is a top view of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a top view similar to theone shown in. Fig. 4 but showing the cap turned to permit withdrawal of the second thermometer;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged detailed sectional view 01?; 2

the upper part of the case of Fig.1;

Fig. '7 is a view of the cap from below on line 1-1 of Fig. 6; g V

Fig. 8 is a top view of a case adapted to contain a single thermometer. 3:0

The numeral l indicates a casing of molded material containing two longitudinal chambers 2; a light spring 3 associated with a metal cup 4 is placed loosely into the bottom of each chamber; thermometers 5 are introduced into the;-;5

chambers with their bulbs resting in the cups l. The expanded springs 3 plus the length of the thermometers 5 are such that when the cap 6 of the casing l is moved to aposition where it does not close one of the two chambers 2, the

thermometer will project above the casing l and the cap 6 as indicated in Fig. 2.

The drive screw 1 is anchored in the casin but the cap 6 is free to turn on the upper portion of the screw 1 under the head 8. The screw 1 is located to one side of the central line which connects the axis of the two chambers, as indicated in Fig. '7. The under part of the cap 6 is provided with the shallow recesses 9 (see Fig. 6), the edges of such recesses being rounded oil as indicated at H]. I

The casing is provided with a conventional clip ll. When the casing is empty and readyto,re-

one side as indicated, for example, in and .4, thereby opening one of the chambers 2. The

' thermometer is then introduced into the chamber and occupies the position shown'in Fig.2. The

thermometer is then pressed down by' the fi nger and the cap moved'to the closingposition. This movement of the cap causestne thermometer to be first held in a position approx mate y flush with the upper edge o'f'the. casing I but as the cap reachesthe'fully' closed positiongthe upper portion of the thermometer rides along" the in"- clined surfaces 10 and '9 (Fig. 6) and the spring simultaneously raises the thermometer to the position shown in Fig. 1. If the cap now moved to the position shown niE gl 5, the thermometer first introduced into the casing will not'leave its recess-because the cap still covers the main;- part of such recess, butthe secondrecess will be fully opened, so that a second thermometer can be introduced. Then, when the cap is again brought to the fully closed position, both offthe thermometerswill be in the position shown in Fig. 1, held in place under light spring pressure, and both cooperating to preserve the closed position of the cap. 'If the physician desires to Withdraw tion such .as indicated in Fig. 4 or in Fig. ,5," and in eachinstance the thermometer in the uncoveredchamber 2 will be'raised as 'indicatedfin Fig.

'2,.s'0 that it may .be conveniently rasped and removed from the casing. Theca'sing ih t he meantime remains in the physician's pocket and does not require to 'be withdrawn. The described arrangement is such that only one thermometer is uncovered at one time. If there are two thermometers in the casing and the 'cap is-turned to the position snownm Fig. 4 and thecap is further turnd' counter-clockwise, the efiect would be to bring the cap recessgwhich previously confined the now exposed thermometer, into alignment with the unexposed thermometer, and this will preserve thethus established relation between the cap and the casing until it is forcibly disturbed. As the cap is rotated, the recesses 9 first operate to cam down the thermometers until their tops ride along the flat under surface ll of the cap (see Fig.7) and then, as one of the chambers 2 is uncovered, the thermometer willlbe ejected in an upwa'rddirection by the force of the springs 3, coming to rest in the position shown in Fig.2. Duringthe time that the casing is carried in the pocket of the physician, the delceive thethe mq ters. th c 6 is moved to 1. iqe -iher i et r a eush q b hesp ins 'may be called upon to examine. is compact and light but strong and it cost is 3 so that they will not be injured by jars or impacts against the case. The entire length of the thermometer except at the bottom of the bulb and at the top remains out of contact with any part of the casing and is maintained in such position by the shape of the bottom cups 4 and the indentations 9 on the under side of the cap.

In some instances, where only one thermometer is to be carried, the arrangement may be that indicated in Fig. 8, for example, where the casing contains only one chamber, but the cap is pivoted at a corner so as to be capable of movement to an uncovering position, the under side of said cap being, however, configured to correspond with one of the recesses 9-10, illustrated in connection with the two-chambered container.

In the casing for the single thermometer,

shown in Fig. 8, the top surface of the casing is provided with an upwardly projecting section l2, less high than the thickness of the cap and having a shoulder l5 against which the shoulder 16 of an under-cut portion M of the cap comes to rest when the cap is in the closed position.

In the casing for a single thermometer the pocket engaging wall of the casing is thin as contrasted with the central section of the two chambered casing and accordingly, instead of fastening the clip II by a pin, as indicated in Figs. 2 and 3, the clip is here fastened in a conventional manner which does not require the use of a pin.

The contours 9 of the recesses in the cap are shallow and have their center of curvature located below the under surface of the cap. This provides a surface which will not cause binding against the thermometers as they are being cammed to their lower positions within the casing. If a smooth movement or capacity for movement were not provided at this point, and,

there were any substantial binding of the thermometer tops, a quick turn of the cap might break the thermometers or might so jam the thermometers as to interfere with proper opening of the cap. 7

The two-chambered casing is preferred in that it provides for thermometers of two different types, each instantly available to the physician according to the nature of the case which he The structure relatively very small. There are many advantages in a casing of this character which need not be specified, since they are apparent to any physician.

I claim: v I

1. A casing for a thermometer having a bulb end and a rounded end, comprising an elongated container provided with a cap, resilient means at the lower end of the container to support the bulb end of a thermometer and to maintain the rounded upper end of the thermometer in interlocked engagement with the under surface of said cap, said elongated container having a length greater than the length of the thermometer to be inserted.therein and said resilient means being capable of contracting when pressure is exerted on the upper end of the thermometer to enable the thermometer to be wholly inserted in said container and being capable of advancing the thermometer so that its upper end projects out of the top of the container when such pressure is removed, said cap being pivotally connected to said container and movable transversely of the latter directly from and to its interlocked 75- recess during such movement of the cap functioning as cam urfaces and coacting with the upper rounded end of the thermometer to depress the thermometer against the resilient means until the top of the thermometer engages the relatively flat portions of the under face of the cap, whereupon, on further transverse move- .ment of the cap, the resilient means are free to raise the upper end of the thermometer above the pper level of the container, the relatively fiat portions of the under side of the cap, on reverse transverse movement of the cap, engaging the thermometer top in depressed position and maintaining the thermometer depressed in the container until the side surfaces of the hemispherically-shaped recess are presented to enable said resilient means to advance such end of the thermometer into the recess, thereby causing such end under the pressure of said resilient mean to participate in centering itself within the recess in the cap and thereby to lock the cap against unintentional opening.

2. A thermometer casing such as defined in claim 1, in which the under surface of said cap is provided with a rounded edge junction between the flat portions and the edge of the hemispherically-shaped recess, said rounded edge junction together with the flat portions and the side surfaces of said recess forming a continuous, smooth, variedly-shaped cam surface adapted to coact with the upper rounded end of the thermometer and the resilient means to control the position of the thermometer with respect to the container and presenting no sharp edges capable of breaking or jamming with the top of the thermometer during the operation of the cap.

3. A thermometer casing such as 'is defined in claim 1, in which saidcontainer is provided with a pair of longitudinally extending compartments having lengths greater than the lengths of the thermometers to be inserted therein and includes "resilient means at the lower ends of said compartments for supporting thermometers positioned therein, said cover being eccentrically pivoted-to said container to enable the same to maintain a thermometer in one compartment when it is pivoted in either direction to uncover the other compartment and the under surface of said cover having two spaced substantially hemispherically-shaped recesses, eachv to receive the upper rounded end of a thermometer and to form an interlocked connection with the same in the closed position of the casing under the pressure of said resilient means,

4. A thermometer casing such as is defined in claim 1, in which the top surface of the container is provided with an upwardly projectingfixed stop'member and in which said cap is provided with a fixed stop member adapted to coact with the stop member on said container to limit the transverse pivotal movement of said cap in one direction. a V r l FAIRLEIGH S. DICKINSON. 

